Soriano's bunt helps spark Nats

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BALTIMORE -- There was no shortage of contributing factors to the Washington Nationals' 9-5 victory over the Orioles yesterday: Livan Hernandez's strong rebound performance, Royce Clayton's bases-clearing double, Daniel Cabrera's wildly ineffective start for Baltimore.

But start with a play that, at the time, looked far less significant than most everything else going on at Camden Yards: Alfonso Soriano's first sacrifice bunt in four years.

Mired in an 8-for-55 slump and hitless in the series, Soriano came to the plate in the third inning following Marlon Byrd's leadoff double and shocked the 27,680 in attendance -- and his manager -- by laying down a perfect sacrifice bunt.

"He did it on his own," Frank Robinson said, "and that made it even more impressive."

Moments later, Cabrera uncorked the second of his four wild pitches on the afternoon, allowing Byrd to score the game's first run. The Nationals never let up, jumping out to an 8-1 lead and cruising to their first win in six games.

"That was big," said Byrd, who went 3-for-5 with a homer. "It surprised everybody, woke everybody up a little bit. That got everyone going. ... He's a superstar in the league. To do that, it means a lot."

Soriano, who hadn't successfully sacrificed since playing for the New York Yankees in 2002, shrugged off his selfless move.

"I can do that sometimes in the game, depending on the situation, depending on how I'm feeling," he said. "Whatever I can do to help the team."

Little did anyone know just how much Soriano would help the team with that dribbler down the third-base line. But it was exactly what the Washington lineup -- which had produced 14 total runs in its previous six games -- needed at that time.

"I think that picked the bench up more than anything else," Robinson said. "That's what it takes: doing the little things. That kind of set the tone for the day."